Mark Hesse would be proud of his legacy. The founder of the American Mountain Foundation died early this year in an indoor climbing accident in Boulder. His organization, however, which started as a climbing advocacy program 30 years ago, has since morphed into the Rocky Mountain Field Institute, an organization focused on environmental stewardship that… Continue Reading Rocky Mountain Field Institute a force for good

The U.S. Green Building Council released the Top 10 States for LEED rankings on Tuesday. Colorado placed eighth in the nation. Regions around the country at the forefront of sustainable building design, construction and operation were recognized. LEED-certified spaces save money for businesses and taxpayers; use less water and energy; reduce carbon emissions; and contribute… Continue Reading Colorado ranks 8th for LEED-certified buildings

Colorado ranked ninth in the nation for solar jobs in 2013. More than 3,600 Coloradans work in manufacturing and installing solar energy, according to a national Solar Jobs Census, released by The Solar Foundation. Nationwide, solar power grew by almost 20 percent in 2013. “The solar industry is putting people to work to meet a growing… Continue Reading Colorado ranks 9th in nation for solar jobs

Fort Carson was recently recognized as No. 66 on the Environmental Protection Agency’s National Top 100 list of the largest green power users in the nation. Fort Carson also ranks No. 4 on the Top 10 Federal Government list. Fort Carson uses nearly 82 million kilowatt-hours of green power annually, which is enough green power… Continue Reading Fort Carson among EPA’s top green energy users in nation

Colorado State University’s Center for the New Energy Economy has published an end-of-year analysis of energy legislation in all 50 states. CNEE’s analysis of the year’s activity, “2013 Year in Review – State Advanced Energy Legislation,” examines 589 bills enacted across nine categories of energy legislation, including key policy trends this session. The nine categories… Continue Reading Colo. State University offers energy legislation analysis

Times were a lot simpler in the 19th Century. If you were a European explorer wandering through the Colorado mountains, you gave names to rivers and mountains, lakes and creeks, and whatever else caught your fancy. A mountain long known as Tava became James Peak, then Pike’s Peak, and later lost its apostrophe to become… Continue Reading Fountain River – change the name and the image

A campaign comprising more than 280 businesses, farmers, ranchers, local officials, civic and environmental organizations and 11,000 people called on Gov. Hickenlooper and other state leaders to support solar energy. The campaign is called 1 Million Solar Roofs. The campaign sets a goal of installing 3 gigawatts of solar energy in Colorado by 2030, or… Continue Reading Campaign sets goal for 1 million solar roofs

The 50 people attending a city-sponsored stormwater gathering on Oct. 24 unequivocally endorsed a regional approach to the county’s stormwater problem. Mayor Steve Bach did not attend. City Council President Keith King said the mayor and City Council are philosophically “starting to come together. I think he’ll come around,” King said of the mayor’s perspective.… Continue Reading Public wants regional approach to stormwater

Nearly a month after Colorado’s last flood pushed the state’s damage estimate to nearly a half-billion dollars, city, county and state agencies have initiated efforts to repair roughly $30 million in infrastructural damage across the Pikes Peak region, according to officials. While the north-central section of the state received the brunt of damage caused by… Continue Reading Repairs from floods begin taking shape